# For those of you that smoke gourd calabash pipes . . .



## sepia5 (Feb 14, 2006)

I'm just curious to hear what you typically smoke in them. Do flakes handle alright, or do you find that the chamber is too big? Do you go traditional with English blends? My first gourd calabash just landed and I'm itching to fire her up this weekend (so long as this cold is finally gone by then!).


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## uvacom (Oct 29, 2008)

Argh...nothing to add here except that I am absolutely dying to acquire one of these as well. Does anybody know about aaameerschaum.com's? They look pretty solid and come with a case. There's also the Butz Choquin calabash. 

About bowl size, most calabashes I've seen have a fairly unremarkable bowl size - usually about 21mm and an inch and a half deep or so. Big, but not massive.


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## sepia5 (Feb 14, 2006)

uvacom said:


> Argh...nothing to add here except that I am absolutely dying to acquire one of these as well. Does anybody know about aaameerschaum.com's? They look pretty solid and come with a case. There's also the Butz Choquin calabash.
> 
> About bowl size, most calabashes I've seen have a fairly unremarkable bowl size - usually about 21mm and an inch and a half deep or so. Big, but not massive.


There's a pretty nice CAO listed on eBay right now, though it may end up being bid fairly high. The BC Calabashes are simply enormous, but I'm sure they smoke well.

I haven't measured, but I'd say the calabash I just received is larger than 21mm and, in any event (and perhaps I'm in the minority here), I usually smoke flakes in rather smallish pipes--think a Dunhill 3 or smaller.


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## Hendu3270 (Jan 23, 2009)

Can't help you on what you should smoke in it but what I can't understand is why a pic did not accompany this post??????:tease:


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## sepia5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Well, I finally am far enough through this cold that I can enjoy life again. It was a nice day here in Connecticut (finally--I've recently been quite critical of my girlfriend's decision to attend graduate school in the North, our having been previously settled along the Florida Gulf Coast), so I fired up the grill and threw on some brats and asparagus. Settled in with a bottle of Ommegang Hennepin afterwards, and then fired up the gourd calabash for the first time. I figured this is a classically English pipe, so why not go with an English blend. And so I loaded her up with some C&D Bailey's Front Porch and took a match to her. 

First the bad. The draw just isn't quite as open as is the case with most of my briars or even my other meer. It can be hard to draw down through the gourd and in to the chamber, which means that it can be hard to get the pipe fully lit. I was using matches, but I think my Zippo pipe lighter may work better on this front. Also, upon relights, I was getting some kind of nasty, stale, camp fire smoke flavors. Now, this was probably largely due to the blend I was smoking--English blends are, after all, typified by a smokey, camp fire flavor. But this was extreme to the point of being unpleasant.

Now for the good. This was bar none the coolest, driest smoke I've ever enjoyed. Furthermore, the draw did seem to open as I worked my way through the bowl and the pipe became more fully lit. I was pretty much able to fairly constantly puff away at the pipe, and neither it nor the smoke became even remotely hot. And I sort of suspect, having now removed the meer bowl, that a good cleaning of the gourd with some everclear or sweetner may eradicate that offensive flavor that presents itself upon the initial relight. Regardless, the nasty flavor only persisted for a few moments upon putting a match to it, and then the tobacco really revealed itself. 

So, overall my impressions of this pipe were largely positive. I certainly do hope another gourd calabash owner may be able to ring in with any advice on what blends work best in this unique pipe. I'm actually thinking that rubbed out straight VAs may actually work well, given that they are notoriously hot burners and this pipe seems to smoke so cool. Oh, and since someone asked, here are a couple pics:


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## Hendu3270 (Jan 23, 2009)

Thanks for posting the pics. That's a sweet looking pipe. I was in the back last night as well with brats on the smoker and a pipe in my hand. One question for you. Is there a defined "bowl bottom" in that pipe or does it just continue to taper with the outside shape?


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## sepia5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Hendu3270 said:


> Thanks for posting the pics. That's a sweet looking pipe. I was in the back last night as well with brats on the smoker and a pipe in my hand. One question for you. Is there a defined "bowl bottom" in that pipe or does it just continue to taper with the outside shape?


The bowl does taper, but not too deep--maybe 2 inches. The meerschaum cup comes completely out so that the inside of the gourd can be cleaned (something I'm not sure the previous owner realized).


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## Arizona (Jul 19, 2007)

Very nice pipe - very classy and handsome indeed! I've been wanting one of these for a long time but that's one thing I've never yet aquired. I'm curious to hear more about this pipe and it's smoking qualities, etc. The cleaning of the gourd also is something I've never known for sure how to do. For me it's always been briars and cobs. So this is an interesting post...


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## Mister Moo (Sep 8, 2005)

I hope you enjoy yours - it is quite handsome looking. I've had a '70's vintage Pioneer gourd calabash for several years and it sees light duty, back porch, summer evenings; only ever smoked english in it out of respect to the tradition of the pipe. The bowl is pretty large. Yes, they are supremely cool, dry and smooth smoking pipes. The are also large, cumbersome and highly impractical. You gotta want one - they are what I'd call good pipes for casual smokers.

Cleaning the bowl is a post-smoke light wipe/scrape with a bristle cleaner to keep the tar from turning into cake. The stem gets swabbed by traditional pipecleaner. I've never let the gourd get goopy as I have seen in some older pipes of this genre. I swab it out with a bristle cleaner every few smokes and never get a buildup. I have seen older calabash pipes with crud in the gourd that was thicker than the natural wall of the pipe. Yuck.


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## Mad Hatter (Apr 8, 2007)

I'd start with something maybe a little lighter on nicotene. Moo was a good dude and loaned me his 'bash. I smoked Kendal Cream Flake (cube cut) in it but I didn't get the usual slow and easy nic hit like I would from a smaller bowl, more like no hit at all probably due to too much too fast. I think it would work great for that has great flavor while falling short in satisfaction. Like Moo said, its big and cumbersome and I would have felt guilty sending his pipe back to him with a chatter mark on the stem, but great for planting your butt and having a nice long smoke.


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## dillonmcmurphy (Aug 5, 2008)

I've had my eye on Calabash's on ebay for a little while now. I want one, but I want to make sure I get one that is a true gourd Calabash as opposed to a lot that are made of wood these days. I just gotta find one that is vintage, gourd, but not too cruddy. Of course every time I get some more cash build up in my pipe fund, the Calabash idea takes the back seat and I either splurge on tobaccos I've been wanting or a gorgeous pipe I can't resist. I guess it is due to the impractical nature of the Calabash


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